BERKELEY -- NFL star Marshawn Lynch of Oakland is being lampooned on the internet and TV for a photo showing his parked white Lamborghini protected by velvet ropes.

His people want to set the record straight.

The scene was staged, according to Mario Bobino, the director of "Family First -- The Marshawn Lynch Story," which concluded filming in Oakland last weekend.

"It was a prop for the movie," Bobino said Thursday. "We did that."

Lynch's representatives reached out to this newspaper to "set the record straight" about the photo, which was taken from an upstairs apartment window across the street from where the car was parked Sunday.

Since then, the photo has gone viral on social media, and has been shared by websites including CBS Sports, Deadspin, Washington Post and NFL.com. Bobino said two Bay Area news stations showed it.

Bobino said he had to talk the Seahawks' star running back into shipping the car to the Bay Area from Seattle to be used in what will be the film's fictionalized opening scene.

The movie begins with the Seahawks winning the Super Bowl and Lynch pulling up to an Oakland club in his luxury car, greeted by fans and paparazzi.

"You've got to remember, this is a movie," said Bobino, stressing that although Lynch portrays himself in the film, it is not a documentary. "It's 70 percent him, 30 percent Hollywood. He didn't want to do the Hollywood thing."

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But Bobino, a 50-year-old Oakland native, said the opening scene is intended to highlight Lynch's climb to stardom from a rough inner-city beginning.

Lynch arrived with his Lamborghini at about 3 p.m. on Sunday, Bobino said, hours before the night-time scene was to be shot. "We put those (ropes) out there because we didn't want nobody messing with his car," said Bobino, who also utilized the ropes in the movie scene.

Lynch, who does few interviews with media, was not available for comment, but Bobino said the former Oakland Tech and Cal star is not particularly upset.

"Marshawn has been used to this type of abuse. He's not tripping on it," Bobino said. "His biggest thing is people have a false percetion of him."

Bobino said he hopes the film accurately portrays Lynch, 28, as a product of Oakland who loves his town and wants to send positive messages to kids.

There is no set release date for "Family First," but Bobino's Debonaire Productions is working with distributors and hopes it will premiere late in the fall.